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Outreach

Space Agenda

The space-related events calendar

This new website is my latest space-related initiative. It will allow you to find out about space events happening all around the world. Conferences, workshops, congresses, symposia, training courses, seminars, and other meetings and outreach events are just one click away. You may search events according to various selection criterions such as date, country and type of event. You may also find events simply by typing keywords. “SpaceAgenda” is an interactive platform, which provides organizers with an opportunity to submit their events while enabling guests to leave comments. You can also easily get informed about updates via your Twitter, Facebook accounts or RSS Feeds. The concept is my creation; I also handle the content management. The site gets over 3000 clicks every month and I have very good feedback on its user-friendliness and relevance/usefulness so far, which is quite promising. Currently there are over 4000 fans available on social media.

It’s the first Youth in Action group on Facebook which I founded in 2007. Youth Partner Network is a tool designed for youth workers helping them to find Partners under the European Youth in Action Program and facilitating the realization of their projects. You may post your project descriptions and ask for interested partners.

# Action 1 – Youth for Europe: supporting exchanges and youth initiatives and encouraging young people’s participation in democratic life

# Action 2 – European Voluntary Service: encouraging young people to take part in a voluntary activity abroad that benefits the general public

# Action 3 – Youth in the World: encouraging cooperation with Partner Countries by building networks, promoting the exchange of information and assisting with cross-border activities # Action 4 – Youth Support Systems: promoting the development of exchange, training and information schemes; Support for bodies active at European level in the youth field

# Action 5 – European Cooperation in the youth field contributing to the development of policy cooperation in the youth field

Currently over 80 project calls and over 100 new members can be seen on our network weekly. 5 admins from 5 different countries moderate discussions on a voluntary basis.

It was my wish to devote this project in honor of Yuri Gagarin and the speech he gave just upon completion of the first manned space flight in Low Earth Orbit. He was only 26 years old when he declared that “Circling the Earth in my orbital spaceship, I marveled at the beauty of our planet. People of the world, let us safeguard and enhance this beauty — not destroy it!” I gathered young Turkish and Polish amateur astronomers to observe the 29th March 2006 Total Solar Eclipse in Side, Turkey. They worked together as part of an intercultural exchange, providing better understanding of each others’ cultures and beyond prejudices.

Acceptance and tolerance were also key drivers of this initiative based around a 3-minutes long event. It brought the participants together for a short time, but introduced them to the planet as their living environment, opening up their minds, making them work in teams and understand the dynamics of the universe. The teams exchanged their methods of astronomical observation, and web-cam astronomy, networked and enriched each others’ passion for astronomy and inspired the general public, introducing them to the use of telescopes and binoculars as well as astrophotography etc.

The total solar eclipse was recorded with large telescopes under the consulting and support of the Turkish National Observatory Institute of TUBITAK (Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey) using many different techniques and equipment also brought from Poland for this amazing opportunity. Participants started to work in advance on the Internet and built a web page to ensure the sustainability and public relations of the project using forums and wiki pages.

The European Commission selected this project as a landmark for “best practice in outreach activities“.

European Union funded Youth ProjectRef no: TR-31-317-2005-R4In cooperation with the Eclipse Hunters project, the project team realized an ‘action 3 project’ to prepare cities to the eclipse. We gave more than 20 seminars in 12 different cities. A promotional jeep covered with Eclipse pictures has been used to raise public interest. After so many activities “Eclipse Hunters” became popular, a successful outreach program able to reach many people across many cities.

Thanks to large media coverage this project had an extensive public impact. Published in the 3 main Turkish scientific magazines prior to the event, TV and radio broadcasts were also performed during the project: 1 live radio talk (in government radio channel), prime time in 2 different national TV channel news, 1 hour TV show in a regional channel, 3 documentary movies and a 2 hour live-cast coverage on CNN-Turk. This project also had large national press coverage. One of the participant’s solar eclipse picture taken during the Exchange was published in an issue of National Geographic Poland. The Eclipsehunters.pl web-page received more than 7000 hits during the eclipse week.

Under the Same Dome of the Sky

European Union funded Youth Project Ref no: TR-11-117-2006-R2

Following the Eclipse Hunters project, the Turkish National Agency approved a second proposal further developing the initiative. The European Union funded what would become an Exchange Project between an EU and Non-EU Member State to take place in Poland. This follow-up activity improved intercultural learning and motivated young team members. In total, I coordinated 17 Turkish and 20 Polish students who participated in this second Exchange Project in Wielun-Poland for 10 days in August 2006. In many of the workshops taking place as part of this initiative, I moderated debates on the specific topic of how to popularize space education in the general public. Observations of Perseid Meteor Showers were the visual side of this Exchange.

National Star Party Organization

In support of The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBITAK)

I was involved in the event starting in 2001 as an expert observer. This is the biggest star party ever organized in Turkey gathering more than 400 amateur astronomers each year (Saklikent-Antalya, 1900 meters altitude). The Event venue is near by the National Observatory. The program includes ‘naked eyes’ observations as well as an introduction to constellations for the first night. The second night is for telescope observations, many workshops related ATM (Amateur Telescope Making) and astrophotography are in the program for beginners.